Closed Door

I admit it.

Honestly, my heart has already melted halfway, no, more than halfway.

“Maybe… it’s not hungry? I fed it a little on the way.”

“Really? But why is it whining? Maybe it’s being fussy because it woke up? By the way, I don’t know anything about cats. What should it be fed?”

“Hmm…”

“Should it be fed cat food? Or can it not eat food yet? Maybe we need to buy cat milk? What did you feed it before this?”

“Hmmm…”

“Sa Gongwoo. Are you sleeping with your eyes open? Why did you suddenly go silent?”

“Ahem.”

“No, answer me. Hey, you.”

“Ha-ha.”

∞ ∞ ∞

“Oh, what a Beauty. Who is our Beauty such a cutie like?”

When I gently tickled the spotted belly with my finger, the kitten lying on its back started wiggling all four paws.

When I first brought it, I was very worried if I could properly raise a nursing kitten. But judging by the fact that its small teeth have already grown well and it chews well, fortunately, it seems the nursing period has already passed.

I searched videos and the internet for information on what’s needed to raise a kitten, and urgently bought a cat litter box, litter, food, canned food, treats, and other necessary things at the store to create basic conditions for keeping a cat.

I thought it was some unexpected trial in my life, but after a few days, I became so attached to it that now I don’t know what to do from adoration, even when it’s just breathing.

“Beauty. Brother has to go down again to take care of business.”

Her name is Beauty.

She has gray-brown fur with clear spots and stripes on her forehead. Her bright eyes, red bean paste-colored nose, and small face demonstrated outstanding features. Looking at the kitten, which showed such incredible cuteness that it made me tremble, this name came to mind automatically.

It was actually a bit difficult to determine the sex, but according to the method of determining sex found on the internet, if there are no testicles, it’s a female.

So Beauty. Following my surname, “Cho Beauty.”

Indeed, one couldn’t think of a more suitable name.

“I’ll be back after the lunch shift, so be a good girl while I’m gone. Understood? Don’t be sad that you’re alone. Don’t be upset, I’ll be back soon. You can play with the toys by yourself, right?”

I understand that I’m acting foolishly, but I’m sad to leave the little kitten alone. I want to carry her in my pocket, but if I’m not going to serve her fur as a garnish to a bowl of seolleongtang for customers, then that’s out of the question.

“Oh, I want to not open the restaurant, I want to stay with Beauty.”

She’s cute when she sleeps, and cute when she moves. Cute when she yawned, cute when she ate food, even when she pooped – also cute. Even just watching when she’s doing nothing, how she breathes, it’s so cute, interesting, fun, and captivating that I can’t take my eyes off.

“Beauty. Brother is leaving. Really leaving? I’m really going?”

The kitten, who was playing on the floor, not paying attention to whether I’m leaving or not, came running when she heard the sound of putting on shoes.

When she runs on her short legs, it seems she still heavily controlled her body, and sometimes she got out of rhythm. I couldn’t hold back a smile looking at her clumsy run.

“Oh-oh, you can’t go out the door. Our Beauty is so pretty that someone might steal you. Go play with toys and scratch your nose. Brother will be back soon.”

I carefully pushed away the fist-sized kitten and closed the door, afraid of hurting it. Although my heart is breaking from the “meow-meow” sound behind the door, it’s soon opening time, and I don’t have time for further affection.

“Ah, I want to rest. I really want to just do nothing and rest, looking only at Beauty.”

Going down the stairs, I deeply thought about whether I really need to work today.

Can’t throw away the already cooked seolleongtang, so need to sell it quickly, and maybe skip the evening shift?

Thinking about what’s left of life if you live it so tensely, I saw someone’s back.

Freely flowing black hair, a beautiful nape confirming the saying that even the nape of handsome people is beautiful, broad shoulders, an impressive back in the shape of an inverted triangle, on which one just wanted to spread a blanket and lie down.

The owner of this familiar figure was peering inside the restaurant.

If the door doesn’t open, one can simply understand that it’s not yet working time, but he pressed against the glass door, putting his palm to his forehead to better see the restaurant from inside – a perfect image to complain about him.

“What are you doing?”

“Oh!”

When I quietly approached from behind and asked, Sa Gongwoo jumped in surprise and turned around.

“Why are you peeking into someone else’s restaurant?”

“What peeking. The restaurant door is locked, Choron is not visible, I was worried if something happened.”

“Instead of such worries, just come at opening time. Do you think I don’t know when to open the restaurant?”

I pushed Sa Gongwoo aside and opened the restaurant door. He stepped aside and quickly followed me inside.

“Were you at home?”

“Yes, well… for a short while…”

I couldn’t bring myself to say that I had prepared everything for work and went up briefly to look at Beauty.

“Did you have breakfast?”

“It’s already lunchtime, your question is a bit late.”

“How’s the kitten?”

“Well, probably fine. I feed her and let her sleep, so she should be fine.”

I answered indifferently, as if I’m not at all worried about the cat, just feeding and putting her to sleep out of pity. I didn’t want to talk about how I love and spoil her, after insisting that I wouldn’t keep her at all, because it seemed like a loss for me.

Sa Gongwoo smiled meaningfully in response to my words. It was a very unpleasant smile.

“I wonder how she’s doing. Won’t you really show her?”

“She’s at home, so it’s inconvenient now.”

“If we go up briefly and look…”

“I have no desire to let strangers into my home, so wake up!”

He’s been trying to infiltrate my home under the pretext of the cat for several days now, but it’s useless.

“Am I a stranger to you?”

“Of course, a stranger. Who else?”

“…Indeed. A stranger.”

After a short silence, Sa Gongwoo smiled bitterly and nodded.

“Why are you making such a gloomy face?”

I didn’t say anything bad, but somehow I feel guilty.

“You’re right. You can’t let just anyone into your home.”

When you say this with such a face, I feel like I’ve done something wrong!

“If you’re so interested… a cat tower should be delivered today, why don’t you come and assemble it.”

And you can see the kitten too, if you want.

After these casually thrown words, Sa Gongwoo’s face, which was gloomy, brightened.

“Then let’s do that? Assembly is quite a complicated matter. Choron shouldn’t deal with this. Awakened ones are best suited for such physical work. You probably don’t know yet, but awakened ones are very good at any physical work.”

“Just do your job and don’t interfere.”

It seems another person similar to you has appeared.

Like Sa Gongwoo earlier, I saw a person shaking the closed restaurant door, then pressing his face against the glass, peering inside, and sighed.

“Either the area has become strange, or suddenly many strange people have appeared.”

“Why?”

“It seems there are more and more people who ignore the stated working hours.”

I slightly moved Sa Gongwoo, who was standing leaning against the wall between the hall and the kitchen, and went out to the hall. There were about ten minutes left until opening time, but I decided to just open.

“Welcome.”

“Long time no see.”

Charles Park, who said this with feigned seriousness, frowning his eyebrows, looked unhealthy today too.

If this was our first meeting, I would have called the police, but unfortunately, it wasn’t the first meeting, and after a joint visit to the police station, I roughly understood Charles’s situation, so I couldn’t treat him harshly.

“Do you remember that we only have one dish on the menu?”

“Of course.”

“Will seolleongtang do?”

“Good choice.”

Although there’s not much to choose from. I just decided to leave everything as is. I’ve long understood that it’s easier to just accept this than to try to explain something to him.

“Do you know each other?”

Sa Gongwoo, who was pressed against the wall and furtively peeking into the hall, grabbed my arm and asked when I returned to the kitchen.

“Not that we’re closely acquainted… it’s the customer’s second visit?”

“What? You scolded me for coming before opening, but you let him in so easily?”

I looked back at Charles, who was sitting as if huddled in the farthest corner of the hall.

“He… just leave him be.”

“And what does second time mean? I don’t remember him coming here, actually he’s my tea…”

“He’s sick.”

“What?”

“What?”

“Huh?”

“What were you about to say just now?”

“No, wait, what do you mean ‘he’s sick’?”

“He has mental problems.”

On the day I called the police due to non-payment, the person who came as Charles’s guardian was a pleasant-looking monk. He apologized repeatedly, paid the food bill, and took Charles away. He also left his contact number in case this happens again in the future. Judging by his habitual actions, this was clearly not the first such case.

I thought the monk must have it very hard.

Taking care of a stranger, not showing the slightest displeasure, although he’s not even a relative. Maybe that’s why he’s a religious person?